BURLINGTON >> While the hiker who encountered and videotaped two black bears in Sessions Woods Friday could have done some things differently, she is not responsible for the erratic behavior and the need to euthanize one of the animals — which has a history of concerning actions — according to officials with the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.

Stephanie Rivkin was hiking in the wildlife management area Friday, a spot she’s enjoyed for more than 20 years. During the encounter, which she captured on cell phone video, a bear with red ear tags approached her several times, even putting his mouth to her leg at one point as she talked calmly to the animal.

On its website, DEEP advises people to shout and wave their arms or slowly walk away when encountering a bear.

But while DEEP spokesman Dennis Schain said Rivkin perhaps could have done some things differently, he added that a bear would not typically engage in the way this one did.

“She didn’t bring it on,” he said Tuesday.

DEEP officials said it’s this bear’s history, combined with the latest incident, that led to the decision to track it down and euthanize it.

In June, the bear bearing the red tags of 065 was captured, tranquilized and relocated from the perimeter fence at Bradley International Airport and later tried to follow a woman into a building in Windsor, according to DEEP. In July it was located in Granby and officials believe it entered a home there.

Additionally, the Sessions Woods incident involves more than people realize, according to the DEEP.

“Our wildlife biologists, who talked to the woman and analyzed the video she took, expressed serious concerns about the behavior of the bear,” Schain said in a statement. “Our experts said that by following the woman for an extended period of time, circling her, and even putting its mouth on her calf, the bear was engaged in what they call ‘bold and aggressive behavior.’”

The experts also said other actions the bear took — such as pursuing the woman whenever she turned her back, stomping, posturing, and jaw popping — were typical of a bear that is tracking and testing potential prey, according to Schain

“To the untrained eye, the bear’s interactions with the woman may look fairly innocent and almost playful — but it is clear that they were not,” Schain said.

But since DEEP officials announced that the animal would be euthanized, there’s been a firestorm of controversy, petitions, hashtags, Facebook posts and even some death threats sent to Rivkin.

A change.org petition to keep the bear alive had more than 9,000 electronic signatures as of Tuesday evening and #sparethebear has been just one active Twitter hashtag. It’s nearly impossible to escape the issue on Facebook, with readers sharing the story about the bear and Rivkin’s video, which had received over 200,000 views by Tuesday afternoon.

As of Tuesday, one petition on the thepetitionsite.com had more than 2,000 signatures and another 14,862.

“If you watch the video, you can see that the bear was very curious, and was sniffing her leg, using its Jacob’s Organ, that is in the roof of the mouth, that further enhances their sense of smell. That is all this bear was doing ... smelling her,” states one petition, started by Linda Peloski.

Jessica Coury Papp of Torrington said the woman should have backed away, not made the video, offered her water bottle and made friendly noises.

“We humans have claimed and developed nearly every possible habitat for wild animals in this area,” she said. “Animals are forced to live around humans, yet when we cross paths with these animals people act shocked and bewildered.”

Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center, based in Mystic, was critical of the DEEP policy to have the bear put down and said Rivkin did some things very wrong, but on its Facebook page urged people to learn from it, not criticize her.

Rivkin acknowledged she made some mistakes but said people should not be so quick to judge, especially since the video clips posted so far only show a portion of the encounter. She said she is considering how to release the entire video.

“During the encounter there were moments of absolute calmness, curiosity, awe, amazement and a moment or two of fear,” Rivkin stated. “The lesson I have learned is to never go into the woods alone or with children without being properly prepared. Bear mace, a larger pocket knife, and now the knowledge of the proper way to frighten a bear should keep me and other hikers safer.”

During encounters, people should make themselves appear large, put their arms over their head and in a loud voice call “no, no bear” while continuing to wave their hands, officials say. If an animal charges, people should stand their ground, walk away slowly and again call out in a “bad dog” voice, according to the Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center post.

Rivkin has changed her outlook somewhat since the incident happened. Although it cast her in a negative light, she initially signed one of the petitions to save the animal.

“I really felt strongly,” she said about her desire to see the bear saved.

However, in the aftermath of the incident she was able to talk to a DEEP biologist on a WPNR show and heard more about the bear’s past behavior. She also considered the possibility of the bear living and hurting someone else. However, she’s not championing the bear’s demise but said she is now taking the position of leaving it in the hands of the experts.

“DEEP made it clear why this bear had to be euthanized,” she said. “It’s their decision. It’s just not my place to say what happens.”

DEEP responds and relocates bears a couple dozen times per year, generally when found in an urban crowded area. DEEP generally euthanizes one to five bears a year, and that includes situations in which an animal is badly injured and the action is never taken lightly, Schain said.

“We are respectful of wildlife and care about nurturing wildlife,” Schain said.

Black bears were largely eradicated from the state by the mid-1800s but in the mid-1980s, biologists saw evidence of a resident population, according to DEEP’s website. Their revival was largely attributed to farm abandonment and reforestation from the late-1800s onward.

DEEP and the University of Connecticut are also in the midst of a bear population study and early estimates are of a state bear population of approximately 700, Schain said. The largest concentration is still in the western portion of the state but they are found nearly everywhere. With no predators, numbers continue to rise and while encounters are few, education is important, the DEEP said.

“It’s a population that’s growing in numbers and spreading in range,” said Schain.

On Tuesday, Rivkin acknowledged she was a little nervous about going out in public with much of the negativity surrounding her actions but said she knows people are emotional when it comes to animals as she is.

“I’m not taking it personally at this point,” she said.

But she admits she’s a little nervous after learning people have shared her personal information on public sites.

“People like that make it fearful to go in public,” she said.

Rivkin, who is 38, did say she would continue to enjoy the great outdoors and has great respect for nature and wildlife. She admits she would do some things differently if she had another encounter.

And while she might worry about a human encounter, Rivkin said she’d love to return to Sessions Woods, a spot she knows well, since she lived most of her life nearby in Bristol.